How Long Is Too Long Before Hungarian Courts?

As litigators, one of the most frequent questions we are asked by our clients is how long it will take to reach a verdict. Clients are wary of the speed with which the Hungarian courts operate – and for good reason.

In the past three decades, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg has ruled against Hungary in hundreds of cases due to significant delays in court proceedings and the lack of an effective remedy to prevent such delays, despite the relevant requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights. The lessons from these rulings did not come cheap, as based on the rulings of the ECHR, the Hungarian state paid out a total of HUF 2 billion in compensation to aggrieved parties between 1992-2018.